James



L. JAMES KNOCK-DOWN SET-UP BOXES Aug. 11, 1959 2,899,120

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 9, 1957 INVENTOR MASEJ/V/Vtis,

ATTORNEY L. JAMES KNOCK-DOWN SET-UP BOXES Aug. 11, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed Jan. 9, 1957 m. E5 vi N E w w a /v 4 W n ATTORNEY Aug. 11, 1959Filed Jan. 9, 1957 L. JAMES mocx-nowu SET-UP BOXES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 weL,

United States Patent 2,899,120 KNOCK-DOWN SET-UP BOXES Louise James, NewOrleans, La. Application January 9, 1957, Serial No. 633,345

2 Claims. 01. 229-23 This invention relates to that type of box whereinthe box is comprised of three sections, being the top, the body, and thebottom, and is primarily concerned with an interlocking construction ofthe side sections and the bottom section.

This invention is an improvement on my Patent No. 2,577,248, granted tome on December 4, 1951.

In this present invention I am particularly concerned in obtaining astructure whereby the interlocking parts of the bottom section and bodysection are such that an appreciably lighter weight of material may beused for the bottom section B and the side section S than has heretoforebeen considered practical, and this applies particularly where the sidesection or body section is of considerable height.

Another consideration is to so construct the cooperating portion of thebody as to facilitate the quick reception of the upper portions of thelocking tongues between the overhanging material of the inner lap b ofthe lip L so that the upper portions of said tongues will act to hug thelips of the bottom B closely to the end portion of the sides S, and sothat a portion of the upper edge portions of the edge of the tongue willpositively engage with the edges of the openings, windows, or socketsand so prevent separation of the side section and the bottom section Bof the box against any pull or tension exerted in the direction of theheight of the body section.

In the manufacture of such boxes it becomes a matter of extremeimportance to cut the manufacturing costs to the lowest possible figure.Also it is of even possibly more importance to turn out a cheap box withthe greatest possible eye-appeal, or appeal to the aesthetic sense, andit is the purpose of this invention to reconcile these two primaryconditions to result in an extremely strong box, all to the end that itmay be sold on a large quantity production basis by automatic stamping,gluing, and semi-assembling machines.

A still further consideration or object of the present invention is'toso construct the bottom B and its lip L by suitable scored lines andadhesive that when shippingor storing the bottom the lip will liesubstantially parallel to the upper face of the bottom B whereby saidbottom pieces may be flattened out to be practically as fiat as a sheetof paper, so that in the present instance the bottom B with its lip Lwould be comparable to two sheets of paper or paper-board stacked flattogether in a stationery storage drawer or cabinet.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a box embodying my invention, thebody portion being broken away to indicate they may be of any desiredheight;

Figure 2, a top plan view of the bottom section B, all spread out flat;

Figure 3, a top perspective view of the bottom section B beforeassociated with the body or side section Figure 4, a cross-sectionalview on the line 4-4 of Figure 3, looking in the direction of thearrows;

Figure 5, a fragmentary corner portion of the bottom B in anintermediate stage of being assembled;

Figure 6, a cross-sectional view taken on the line 66 of Figure 3,looking in the direction of the arrow;

Figure 7, a side elevation of the body or side portion, broken through;

7 space between the outer lap b and the inner lap b, t0

Patented Aug. 11, 1959 the upper corners of the socket to facilitate theentrance of the upper portions of the locking tongues between the outerportion b and the inner portion b of the lip L; and

Figures 12 to 16, inclusive, are perspective fragmentary detail views ofone corner of the bottom B, Figure 12 showing the bottom blank spreadout fiat like a sheet of paper and from that state or condition theseveral views show the blank as passing through the several stages toerection, it being noted that Figure 14 shows the blank partially foldedover in its commercial knockdown state wherein it is comparable to twosheets of paper lying flat against each other.

The purpose of the construction, broadly speaking of the three-part box,is to avoid the necessity for the use of costly space to store really avery small number of boxes, relatively speaking, so that a large numberof box parts or units may be stored in the conventionally small cabinet,and the body or side portion S of the desired height of box may bequickly selected and erected right on the spot.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, T represents the top, S thesides or body portion, and B the bottom portion or section.

In general, the construction and operation of the box, or the assemblyof the box, will be very much as shown in my Patent 2,577,248 abovementioned, with the exception however that the locking tongues 4 of saidpatent are not notched out at their upper or free end corners as are thelocking tongues 1 of the present invention, as indicated at 2, to leavean intermediate holding portion 3 between said notches. In assemblingthe bottom B and the sides S the holding extension 3 will fit behind thematerial of b, while the upper converging side edges 4- of the sockets 5will engage with the shoulders 2 of the respective tongues 1, so thatwhen the side portion or section S is fully received by the lip L of thebottom B, said side portion or body S will be held very tightly andsnugly against endwise separation, while at the same time the upperextensions 3 will engage with the outer face of the inner lap b of lip Lto hold the latter against outward sag or gaping to hold lip L neatlyand closely adjacent to the body or side section S to make a veryneat-appearing but at the same time quite cheap box. Put differently, itwill result in a very neat and attractive box that will not have a cheapappearance, but nevertheless would be cheap to manufacture on a largequantity production basis.

Considering my invention in one of its narrower aspects, the material ofthe inner lap b' will be scored or have scored lines or depressions 6formed in it at right angles to the free or upper edge of the lip L,extending from the upper edge of the latter to the respective uppercorners of the sockets 5. v

This will cause the material above the sockets 5 and between the scoredlines 6 to kind of pucker out, away slightly from the outer lap b of lipL, to facilitate the entry of the upper extensions 3 of the tongues 1into the press against the outer face of said inner lap b, to hug thelatter close to the side section or body section S.

However, the corner constructions of the box of the present inventiondiffer quite noticeably from those shown in my said patent in that I cutthe end tabs on a common line parallel to the line of fold of the endportions of the lip L at a point approximately one-third of the lengthof said end tabs as at 8, and said out will extend from the laterallyouter edge of each said tab for approximately three-fourths of itswidth.

The upper or inner faces of that portion of said tab beyond the said out8 is covered on its upper or inner face with an adhesive, whereby on itsbeing folded to its final position it will be permanently secured to theopposed face of the adjacent end portion of said lip L.

With the parts formed, cut, scored, and pasted as above described, theside portions of the lip will lie substantially fiat against the upperface of the bottom and the upper faces of the end lip portions aresubstantially so, to the end that it may be filed or stored or stackedin the same manner as a sheet of paper is.

When it is desired to erect the lip to receive the bottom portion of thebody portion or sides S, the parts will move through the intermediatestages of assembly as illustrated in Figures 12 to 16 until the lip isfinally erected into vertical position as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

In this connection it is to be noted that the out line 8 will extendfrom the edge of the lip portion to the inner end of the scored lineswhich extend from said inner end of the cut 8 on about a 45 degree angleto the outer or lower end of the scored line 11, which extends at rightangles to the upper or lower edges of the side portion of the lip, saidscored lines there facilitating the end fold of the lip, to the end thatthe lip may be assembled and held or locked in a vertical position atright angles, or substantially so, to the upper face of the bottomportion B.

It will be noted that the adhesive portion 9 extends from the inner edgeportion of the side portion to the lower or outer side of the lip andalso from the inner or lower end of the cut 10 to the outer or lower endof the scored line 11 at the point where the slanting scored lineintersects the right angle scored line and the outer edge of the lip.

In making up the bottom with its collapsible lip, the portion of the endtabs being covered with adhesive in a moist state will be raised througha 45 degree angle as shown in Figure 14. With the side portions beingerected to a 45 degree position, the inner portions of the end portionsof the lip will be moved to swing about their upper edges until they lieflat against the outer portions b of the lip L.

With the parts in this intermediate stage the lock stub 12 is in posiionto be received in the notched-out socket 13 of the adjacent side portionof said lip L.

To complete the manufacture of the bottom B, the side portions of thelip L will be completely swung over inward until they rest fiat againstthe upper face of the bottom B, and the end portions coated withadhesive will be firmly pressed against the adjacent end of the portionb and will be left in this position preferably until they firmly adherethereto, as shown in Figure 14. It is at this stage that they are to bestored or filed in the cabinet, convenient for use as needed. Now toerect the lip L to receive the lower end of the side portion S, it willsimply be. necessary to pull outward the: side portions until they aresubstantially vertical and then fold the portion b of the end portionsof the lip L down and over the adhesive anchored ends of the sideportions of the lip L and topaste the inner marginal adhesive coatedanchor piece 7 to the face of the bottom, in which stage the lugs 12will be received by the notches 13 to contribute to the firm corner lockof the lip L.

Considering my invention from a broader and further aspect, the upper orouter edge portions of the tongues 1 need not be notched, but the sideedges of the tongues,

4 and of the sockets would be upwardly or outwardly inclined and thescored lines 6 might still be used so that the material between the twoadjacent scored lines kind of pucker or bag out and form an easy entryfor the upper end of tongue 1.

Also it might result in certain desirable manufacturing operations andmanufacturing advantages if the scored lines 6 are formed in materialsalong two opposing inner faces of the lip L and were omitted entirelyfrom the other two sides of the lip.

Of course, in the six-panel or eight-panel box the scored lines might bein every alternate panel in the octagonal form, and the same might beused also in the six-sided form.

I have referred to light-weight board such as paste-- board or paperboard without giving any indication of what I consider light-weightpaper board or pasteboard, so that I wish to supplement my statement bysaying that it might be of .025 caliper. I would not wish to be held toodefinitely to this weight of material as often there could be avariation within the board itself, so that I think that this statementshould be considered as merely approximate and not a definitelimitation.

I claim:

1. Locking means for securing a pair of sheet material box sections inassembled relation against a disassembling force applied thereto in agiven linear direction, one of said sections including a marginalupstanding lip having an inner lap connected to said lip at the freemarginal edge of the lip only and disposed generally parallel to saidlip, said l ap being formed with a locking recess spaced from saidmarginal edge and with indented relatively spaced score lines extendingfrom said recess normally to said edge, said score lines abuttingagainst said lip to space the material of said lap between the scorelines away from the lip and thereby to define a pocket opening towardsaid locking recess, the other of said box sections being disposedwithin and parallel to said marginal lip and including a locking tongueof greater width than said recess spanning said recess, said lockingtongue having a free end directed toward the opening of said pocket andincluding a relatively narrower extension at its free end projectinginto said pocket, the tongue having shoulders on opposite sides of saidextension abutting against and in locking engagement with said materialat the opening of said pocket at locations in substantial registry withthe respective score lines.

2. Locking means for securing a pair of sheet material box sections inassembled relation against a disassembling force applied thereto in agiven linear direction, one of said sections including a marginalupstanding imperforate lip, and sheet material means secured to said lipover and parallel to the inner face of said lip, said sheet materialmeans being formed with projections abutting against the inner face ofsaid lip for maintaining said means in spaced relation to said lip andwith said lip defining a pocket opening away from the free marginal edgeof the lip, the other of said box sections including a locking tongue,extending adjacent and generally parallel to said lip and having a freeend directed toward said free. edge of the lip, said tongue being ofgreater width than the said pocket and having a relatively narrower freeend extension operatively received in said pocket, the free end of saidtongue abutting in locking relation against said sheet material means onopposite sides of, the pocket.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNI-TED STATES PATENTS1,126,246 Maier Jan. 26, 1915 2,193,924 Huye Mar. 19, 1940 2,458,578Evans Jan. 11, 1949 2,577,248 James Dec. 4, 1951 2,598,050 Guyer May 27,1952 3 Klein Feb. 22, 1955

